More 'empower' to the people

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It's hard to turn on the television or read a newspaper without seeing some kind of coverage about our energy problems. Whether it's the price of gasoline, electricity or natural gas, consumers are understandably upset at the increasing costs. When the Illinois Commerce Commission recently granted ComEd a rate increase to cover higher costs of managing and operating an extensive and reliable electricity distribution system, the usual suspects came out and complained. However, a less-covered, long-term component of the decision could go a long way toward changing the way we all use our electricity and how much we pay utilities like ComEd. Within the ICC approval was funding for a pilot program that will improve the next generation of electricity meters and empower consumers (pun intended) with the ability to use energy efficiently and save money. Why is this investment so important? Think about it. When it comes to electricity, almost no one knows the cost of a kilowatt-hour of electricity, or how much it costs to keep your refrigerator cool, or watch your flat-screen television, or charge your cell phones. More important, most people feel helpless because they don't know the basics of how to decrease their electricity use and aren't reminded of the benefits until the bill comes - when it's too late. One of the issues that environmentalists, politicians and energy companies all agree on is that conservation and efficiency of energy, in general, and electricity, specifically, is the fastest, most economical way for our country to improve our energy crisis. By itself, it won't solve all of our future challenges. However, think of the benefits to our environment and our pocketbooks if we were all given real power to decrease the amount of electricity we use. How can we do this? The pilot project that the ICC just approved for ComEd is the first step. Imagine having real-time knowledge of how much energy you're using, and how much it's costing you. Imagine being able to set a "smart meter" to warn you when you're using too much energy at peak rates, so you can choose whether to turn off lights or use appliances later in the day when energy costs less. This is just the beginning of something called the "smart-grid" program - creating a 21st-century network that allows more control of how much energy we use, and gives utilities the ability to deliver the electricity more reliably and with better customer service. It will take additional investment from all consumers to build the infrastructure that will bring us the full benefits of a smart-grid system. That's why the pilot program in Illinois and the others around the country are a perfect way to work out the bugs and figure out the most effective and efficient way to build an electrical distribution system that empowers the people. The ICC and ComEd should be applauded for getting this smart-grid program started, so we can invest in a better system and give people the chance to save energy and money. Tom Wolf is the executive director of the Illinois Chamber of Commerce Energy Council, Chicago.